Two new exhibitions have opened the 2022 programme at The Ropewalk.  In the Artspace a familiar landmark, Spurn Point, is seen through the lens of photographer Brian Adams.

Here Silence Stands derives its title from Philip Larkin’s poem, Here, where he describes his journey to Spurn.  Brian has been visiting Spurn for almost 20 years and focuses on man-made material that increasingly resembles natural matter due to wave and weather erosion.

The accompanying exhibition sees Brian look at the self-portrait as a means of exploring the nature of the photographic image.  In Mirrors, Windows and Shadows he goes beyond today’s obsession with the selfie and asks whether the self-portrait is a mirror reflecting the character and concerns of the artist; a window through which to better know the world; or a means of “fixing a shadow” as described the inventor of photography, Fox Talbot, in the 19^th century.

Gallery One features Surface Levels, an exhibition by five ceramicists from different parts of the UK who all have a close affinity with fired clay and a common concern with its surface. From the patterned surfaces of St. Ives potters John Bedding and Sarah Dunstan to the layered and distressed pots of Dumfries- based Andrew Adair; the heavily patinated architectural vessels of Hertford’s Elly Wall to the richly coloured and playful ceramics by the Redditch potter David Wright.

The Artspace exhibition closes on Sunday, March 13, with the Gallery One exhibition closing a week later.  Entry to both exhibitions is free and The Ropewalk is open Monday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm and from 10am to 4pm on Sundays.